Structo Artcraft 240/4

I recently purchased this little cutie on eBay. It's a Structo Artcraft 240/4 (4-harness). It's 15 inches long x 10-1/2 inches wide x 13 high and has a maximum weaving width of 8". The loom came with a 15-dent reed. If the reed is slayed two threads per dent (for a sett of 30 ends per inch) the loom could accommodate 240 warp ends.

The Structo Artcraft loom was originally produced by the Structo Manufacturing Company of Freeport, Illinos. The company was started in 1908 and was the producer of metal toys. In 1921 they began producing toy weaving looms. Later, the toy looms were discontinued and actual standard weaving looms were made. The looms were manufactured until 1972 when the loom business was sold to the Dick Blick Company who continued manufacturing the looms until 1981 when they decided to take them out of production. Dick Blick still holds the manufacturing rights to the loom.

The Structo Artcraft looms were sold through retail outlets as well as mail order. They manufactured both pressed steel and wooden looms. In 1930 Mary Meigs Atwater wrote "Manual of Instructions for the Structo Artcraft Looms: Nos. 240, 420, 600". Atwater sold the loom through her Shuttle-Craft Guild mail order business.

The looms were popular workshop looms and for weaving samplers. For more information visit this website or join the Yahoo group all_things_structo.

I finished the tea towels or are they dish towels?

I wanted to take the newly restored loom for a test drive so I put on 5 yards of 8/2 unmercerized cotton and wove plainweave towels. This was the first time I used weaving sticks and I really liked it since this loom has a much smaller shed than I am used to. I have some very beautiful 24" cherry ones and plan to make more in various lengths.

The finished tea towels...

I'm leaving today, heading for West Virginia, for another Windsor chair class. Below is the rocker I made last year. I finally finished it a couple of weeks ago.


This time I am making a settee. Before heading to class I needed to turn this hard maple stock into legs, six to be exact.


On the lathe...


All finished...